Three charged over Hollande affair actress photo

NANTERRE (AFP) - A photographer and two executives at the magazine that exposed French President Francois Hollande's affair with an actress are to be charged under France's strict privacy laws, a prosecutor said Saturday.

Photographer Laurent Viers and two Closer magazine executives will appear in court on July 1 charged with breach of privacy, which carries a maximum penalty of a year in jail and a fine of up to 45,000 euros (S$78,039).

The charges relate to a picture of the actress, 41-year-old Julie Gayet, behind the wheel of her car that Closer published in January. Under French law, the inside of a car is considered to be a private space.

Prosecutor Robert Gelli said the evidence - including Gayet's own testimony - indicated that Viers took the photograph.